Poor Mary Anne!
by Elizabeth8289
Summary: Mary Anne was starting to feel tired. Then, her father noticed she had a fever. Plus, her neck was swollen. That was when she found out why she had those signs: she had mononucleosis. What's going to happen now?
1. The Signs

I was on the couch resting on a Sunday. I was already for church. But I was feeling tired lately. I always thought it had to do with my blood sugar- I'm diabetic. Yet, whenever I checked it, it's usually normal.

"It's almost time to head for church," said Sharon.

I didn't hear her. I had just fallen asleep. Actually, it would be the second time ever since I got up. I fell asleep before breakfast. I thought it would make me feel better, but it didn't help. Plus, I showered. So, why am I feeling so tired?

"There's no time to sleep right now," said Sharon.

"Is everyone almost ready to leave for mass?" asked Dad.

"I just noticed Mary Anne's sleeping on the couch," said Sharon.

"Again?" asked Dad, who was starting to get concerned. "I bet eating breakfast or taking a shower didn't help out. I'll handle this and you can get the crew."

Dad went to me and said, "Honey, it's time to leave for church."

I was half-asleep when I sat up.

"I don't get why I'm still tired. How can I avoid falling asleep during mass?" I asked. "I'd be embarrassed if that happened to me."

"You got a valid point," said Dad.

"I think she should stay home to avoid that," suggested Meredith.

"You know what? That would be a good idea for it to do," agreed Dad.

I agreed with her, too. I had a fever anyway. So, that's what they did. I was glad about that. It still didn't help. I was still asleep when Dad and the others came back two hours later after they had lunch. I didn't even had any lunch because I wasn't hungry. I was in my room this time. Our mass is at 10:30 am every Sunday.

"I'll go see how Mary Anne is doing," said Dad.

"Okay," said Sharon.

"I was wondering about that, too," said Carlos.

Dad did notice I was still asleep. That was when he noticed something else was wrong: my neck was swollen and my fever hasn't gone down. He left and went down.

"I better call Dr. Wellington to see if she can get checked on. I just noticed her neck is swollen and her fever hasn't gone down either," said Dad.

"That's not a good sign," said Meredith.

"And, I think I might know what those signs are," said Dad as he went to the phone to call my doctor.

After that, he said, "Dr. Wellington said I can bring her in now. He's available and not seeing any patients."

"Good," said Carlos.

"I know," said Dad. "I'll go get her."

Dad came in to me and said, "I called your doctor and wants to see you right away."

"Good," I said.

"I noticed your fever didn't go down and your neck was swollen," said Dad.

That got me nervous. I remembered those signs: Mallory had mono and was out for a few months. Am I getting that, too? On the other hand, I'd be glad to find out what was wrong with me.

At the doctor's, I added, "I have been feeling tired. It's not my blood sugar."

"I know. Your dad told me the other signs you were having," said Dr. Wellington.

He took a blood and a strip test.

"It could take awhile for the test results to come up. I'll call you," said the doctor.

"Okay," said Dad.

At home, I was on my bed resting again.

"The results will take awhile, so the doctor said he'll give me a call once it does," said my father. "I'm just relieved that I brought her to see the doctor because I didn't want to let that go. I didn't want her to fall asleep in her classes either."

"I agree with you," said my stepmother.


	2. The Family Meeting

An hour later, the phone rang.

"Excuse me for a minute," said Dad as he went to answer it. "Hello."

"Hi, this is Dr. Wellington calling," said the doctor.

"Oh, hi, what's up?" asked Dad.

"The test results just came up. Mary Anne has mononucleosis. That's what made her very tired. The fever and the swollen neck were the other signs," said Dr. Wellington.

"Wow, I'm glad I did the right thing because I didn't want to let that slide," said Dad.

"I know. She cannot do anything for awhile until I say so, which she can't go to school or anything else including baby-sitting. Does she have any special events coming up with Cam?" asked the doctor.

"Not that I know of," replied Dad.

"She should let him know ahead of time so she can get a lot of bed rest," said Dr. Wellington. "I'd be concerned that if she gets all excited, she could get even more exhausted."

"So would I," said Dad.

"And, she can do a little bit of homework at a time because if she gets too much she could get tired again unless she wants to wait until she gets back to school," said the doctor.

"I don't blame you for that," said Dad. "I'll ask her before I call the school tomorrow to let the principal know so he can talk to the teachers."

"Okay," said the doctor. "Liquids can help Mary Anne as well like juice or water. And, she can eat anything light. That can also help."

"Alright," said my father.

After they talked, he called for a family meeting.

"What's going on, Dad?" asked Carlos.

"That was the doctor who just called. Mary Anne has mononucleosis. That's why she was tired and kept falling asleep. The fever and the swollen neck explained why as well," said Dad.

"Gosh. Is she going to be okay?" asked Meredith.

"She'll be fine. It could take awhile for the mono to go away. So, that means she can't do anything or go anywhere until the doctor says so. No baby-sitting, no school, and so on- especially the studios or any special events because her doctor didn't want to get too tired if she gets overwhelmed," said Dad.

"Wow. I understand," said Carlos.

"Your mother and I will need all three of you to help out because I'm going to excuse her from doing any chores," said Dad. "However, I'll let you baby-sit and still go to games or practices. You are allowed to do chores when you're all available."

"Okay, since I always watch Carlos practice, I can always skip them for now to take over. I'll still attend the games with you guys though," said Meredith.

"That would be the best bet for you to do," agreed Sharon.

Even though Carlos was disappointed, he actually understood.

"Question: what about the New York City weekend trip coming up?" asked Dawn.

"About that: I don't think that would be a good idea for Mary Anne at this moment. I don't want her to get too thrilled after seeing any sights," said Dad.

"Plus, being in bed instead of being out wouldn't be a fun family trip for Mary Anne," added Meredith.

"She would agree with you," said Carlos.

"Therefore, we should postpone the trip until the doctor gives her the okay to go everywhere again," said Dad.

"I think so, too," said Sharon.

"I'll let Mary Anne know later. She might be still sleeping," said Dad. "I don't want to wake her to tell her."

"Good idea," said my stepmom.


End file.
